Hoosier Gardener

An informed, yet personal take on natural gardening in Indiana and other dirty topics.

An informed, yet personal take on natural gardening in Indiana and other dirty topics.

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Great Backyard Bird Count this weekend

Finch at tube bird feeder in winter
Bird feeders and a water source will keep birds happy in your landscape. (C) Photo Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp

         We’ve just celebrated the loved ones in our lives on Valentine’s Day and now it’s time for the birds.

         No, not the movie, but the Great Backyard Bird Count. You don’t even need a backyard to participate.

         The Great Backyard Bird Count is a global event, where people count the birds they see in their outdoors. Its sister, the Christmas Bird Count is the largest and oldest citizen scientist project in the world. People have been counting birds at Christmas for 115 years. 

         This is the 25th year for the Great Backyard Bird Count and it is easy to participate. It’s a great family nature activity, whether you have a backyard, balcony, patio, deck, or window with an outdoor view.

Getting started to watch, count birds

  1. Decide where you will watch birds.
  2. Watch birds for at least 15 minutes at least one time during the four-day bird count. 
  3. Count all the birds you see or hear at your location and within your timeframe. There are tools available to help with this.
  4. If you’re a beginning admirer of birds and new to participating in the count, download the Merlin Bird ID app. It’s free and steps you through identifying birds by their colors and form and their song. It also has maps to show where and which birds are in the area.
  5. If you’ve counted birds before, look at the eBird Mobile app, or enter  your bird list on the eBird website (for laptops and desktops).
  6. If you are going to count as a group, check out the special instruction.

What birds I see    

         Birds I see regularly in my landscape are chickadees, titmice, house finches, blue-gray nuthatches (whose song sounds like a squeak toy), brown creepers, robins, cardinals, juncos, weaver finches, mourning doves, red-bellied woodpecker, downy and hairy woodpeckers. I also have song sparrows and chipping sparrows, usually in summer.

         I get a lot of birds because I have four birdbaths in summer, two of which are heated in winter. If there’s one thing you can do to attract birds to your garden, it’s add a water source.

         I also feed the birds: Two suet feeders, two platform feeders, three tube feeders. In a month or so, I will add the feeder that attracts Baltimore orioles. I don’t have a hummingbird feeder, but I have flowers those birds like to visit.

         Learning about birds comes naturally to gardeners, I think. It’s all a part of knowing your environment and what thrives there.